Center of Gravity (Marauders Book 3)

by Lina Andersson

  -o0o-

  Three days later, Mitch was still madly in love with Nederwiet and Amsterdam. He’d heard about how things worked in Amsterdam, but he’d still been shocked when he walked into an alley full of display windows and realized there were women in most of them—lightly dressed women.

  Bull had immediately gone into one of them, and they hadn’t seen him again that night. Mitch couldn’t blame him; the women were hot. Most of them looked pretty fucking bored, though, and a lot of them were talking on the phone while glaring at the people walking by. It sort of felt like a zoo, but instead of kids looking at monkeys, it was drunk middle-aged men looking at women.

  The next day Bull had been eager to go to a few museums, which had highly shocked everyone, but it turned out one of the prostitutes had informed him about a couple of sex museums and a torture museum. Eagle had obviously been to all of those, and he went with them. Bull’s only comment was that Wrench would’ve loved those places, and they’d had a hard time getting him to move from a display case with the Pear of Anguish. The Torture Museum was a small, cramped museum with narrow hallways, and Bull was pretty much filling it up, stopping others from being able to pass him. Mitch had also been worried that Bull was going to try to steal it.

  After two museums, Mac and Mitch left the others and went to a coffee shop instead, and it was just the two of them for the rest of the day. Usually, whenever they went somewhere, Mitch didn’t hang out with Mac, simply since Mac didn’t drink much and definitely didn’t hunt for pussy. But this time Mitch was sort of in the same position, and it was quite nice to hang out. It wasn’t as if they didn’t usually see each other often, but it had been three days straight with him, and it had been great.

  They walked back to the clubhouse. The Smiling Ghouls had offered them bikes, but after the first attempt at riding in Amsterdam, Mitch had thought it best to not try again and definitely not while stoned. The traffic was insane, and the roads about as narrow as the houses.

  Their dad was sitting outside the clubhouse and got up to meet them.

  “Need you two for a while. Daan gave us a room so we could talk. The others are waiting.”

  “You could’ve called,” Mitch said.

  “Wasn’t any hurry. Daan brought some of his hookers and Nederwiet here. No one minded waiting.”

  “I bet,” Mac chuckled.

  It took them a while to collect all of them, and Tommy, Mace, and Sisco were zipping up their pants with big grins when they came walking into the room.

  “You really picked the wrong time to get back with Swan,” Sisco smiled when he sat down. “They got some Class-A hookers.”

  “Yeah,” Mitch muttered, but he honestly didn’t care. “So what’s up?” he asked Chucky and his dad.

  “Brick here told me that you, and some of the others, had some concerns about the relationship between the Europeans and the Americans. The same concerns have been raised in Englewood, and I think it a few of the other charters.” He looked at the two other presidents at the table, and both of them nodded. It was the mother charter and the border clubs who’d been invited, which were the charters the Greenville Marauders worked closest with. “First off I wanna hear what you have to say about this club.”

  “They’re good,” Jocko started. He was one of the presidents. “Professional, no bullshit, no unnecessary dick-swinging—I like ‘em.”

  “Me, too,” said de Rais, the third and final president, with a nod. “These guys know what they’re doing. Think we should make sure to maintain a good relationship with them, though. I’m not eager to find out what Eagle’ll do to us if we fuck up.”

  “This is about the question he had to us yesterday, isn’t it?” Jocko said with a crooked smile.

  The presidents had all had an extra meeting the day before, and Mitch’d noticed that they’d looked a bit shaken when they left, but he hadn’t pressed Brick for details.

  “He wanted us too look into the possibility of spreading along the West Coast. Or a any straight pipeline that leads us to Portland,” Chucky explained.

  “What clubs are working the Washington area?” Mitch asked.

  “Smaller clubs, nothing major,” Brick answered. “We met some of few of them at Sturgis two years ago, but there’s no major hitters. Might be some who sell pot, but we’ll just transport through the area, so it shouldn’t be a problem. Think some of them might have good contacts, but nothing we’d have to worry about.”

  “Except the Ghouls. They’re all over the West Coast,” Sisco smiled. “God damn!”

  That’s when it hit Mitch. West coast was in large part owned by the Smiling Ghouls. The Marauders might not be able to go directly along the coast, but as long as they were working with them, it wouldn’t be that much of a problem as long as they didn’t set up in their cities. They’d be able to get established in peace, and set up a working pipeline. What Mitch was wondering was what would happen once they had that shit down, and he had a feeling that would be when the European Smiling Ghouls made their move against the US branch. He looked at his dad.

  “What did Daan say?”

  “He didn’t confirm it, but he didn’t deny it either.”

  “You’re doing that thing when you’re talking over our head,” Mace muttered. “I’m like ten steps behind you two, so can someone who’s following them explain to the stupid muscle what they’re seeing that I’m not?”

  “They’re setting us up so they have something working before they’re cutting ties with the US Ghouls,” Sisco mumbled. “Think the cartel knows about this?”

  “Daan’s a smart guy. He wouldn’t mess with a cartel,” Chucky said. “He’s aware we’re not as big as the Smiling Ghouls in the US, and he’s basically telling us to grow until we are.”

  “He expects us to get involved?” Tommy asked.

  “No, not necessarily, but he is expecting us to be able to keep the shipments going while it goes down,” Brick answered. “And my guess would be that he’s hoping we’d be able to fill in some of the losses with the help of the cartel if that is needed. But like we’ve established, he’s a professional and smart man. I have a feeling he’ll make sure all his business arrangements are secured before he makes his move. This isn’t gonna happen any time soon.”

  “Am I the only one who has a bit of a problem with this?” de Rais asked. “He might be professional, but he’s obviously a disloyal fucker, too.”

  “No. I have a problem,” Bull answered.

  “Loyal and smart doesn’t always go hand in hand,” Brick pointed out. “But I know what you mean. In this case I think it’s a guy, or a part of a club, who’s tired of doing all the job with others getting rich on their hard work.”

  “I’m not sure how fucking comfortable I am with going behind the US branch’s back on this,” someone said. “That shit doesn’t feel right at all. I guess it’s gonna have to be us deciding who we’re working with, but I don’t know… I think, in the end, we’re gonna have to make a decision on who’s side we’re on, and I’m not convinced the cartel is gonna stay out of that decision.”

  The all nodded. A cartel was not the kind of organization you wanted to fuck with, at least not without some serious backers, and besides the cartel, the Marauders didn’t have any such backers.

  “I think we should keep in mind that Daan isn’t trying to keep this from us,” Chucky said. “Which I think speaks in his favor. He’s not trying to fuck us over. He might not have said out loud what he was planning, but I get the feeling that’s because it’s not a set plan yet, just something he’s considering. He’s giving us a possibility to stay on the sidelines or possibly to back out of the entire deal.”

  “So that’s the question,” Brick said and looked around the table. “If anyone wants us to back out of the deal because of this. Anyone who has serious second thoughts?”

  “I’m more interested what we would do if push comes to shove,” de Rais said. “If they try to break free, would we normally back the US or th
e European branch, not taking the cartel into account?”

  There was a silence around the table, and finally Mitch spoke up.

  “I’d back the Europeans. I honestly don’t think the US guys are much without them, and I frankly think they’re dicks. So no matter if I take the personal preference or the business preference into account, I’m landing on the Europeans.”

  More nods, and Chucky spoke up. “Anyone objecting?”

  No one did, and Mitch assumed that had settled it. He would’ve been more worried if it seemed like something they didn’t generally agree on, but that didn’t seem to be the case. Even if de Rais had voiced some concerns, they were just general concerns, and that was pretty much what de Rais always did. He liked playing the Devil’s Advocate, and it was good that he did. If he’d truly objected, he would’ve let them know.

  “How much of a problem do you think this might become?” Mac asked Mitch a few hours later.

  “Honestly don’t know,” Mitch admitted. “What I do know is that it might be our best chance to grow into the west without much effort, if that’s what we want to.”

  Mac was silent for a while, and then started giggling. “Has Dad filled you in on his plans yet?”

  “What plans?”

  “About you and me.”

  “Taking over the club?” Mitch chuckled. “He told you?”

  “Nah, it was Bear. Or… I kind of figured it out when he spent a drunk night telling me about how important the VP is. So I’m guessing those two have been planning for a while.”

  “It’s fucking years off, if it ever happens, I’m not gonna think about it.”

  “Me neither.” Mac smiled. “I wouldn’t mind, though. Not if it was you at the head of the table.”

  “If I ever end up there, it’ll be if you’re with me. Don’t like making decisions when you’re not around.”

  “I’ll be there,” Mac laughed. “I’m gonna go call Vi.”

  “Tell her I love her,” Mitch yelled after him.

  He’d thought about it, but not as much as he’d expected when Brick first brought it up, and he knew for sure he wouldn’t do it without Mac—under no fucking circumstances. He hadn’t for a second thought Mac would be upset about their dad’s plans even though they were for Mitch as the president instead of himself. That just wasn’t his style.

  -o0o-

  The entire Amsterdam experience had been great, and towards the end of the week, Mitch was sure they’d made the right decision by going into business with them. They hadn’t made any promises about adding charters of their own, but Daan didn’t seem to mind. He reminded Mitch of Brick in the way he sort of planted seeds and let them grow while waiting at the sidelines. Another reason why he liked him.

  He’d talked to Anna at least once a day, and her stay with Mel seemed to have gone well. At least she hadn’t complained. Phone sex had been a big no, though. Apparently she didn’t want to do that while being a guest at a house full of people. He tried to claim he was a guest in an overfull clubhouse, but it hadn’t worked. Every time he hung up, he’d been close to saying ‘I love you,’ but he hadn’t. They also hadn’t mentioned Irina’s offer to take over the Dobronravov apartment, but Mitch had genuinely liked the idea. He wasn’t a house kind of guy, and it was a great apartment. He’d been slightly reluctant until Irina pointed out that it wasn’t a shrine. She’d made quite a few changes when Anna’s parents moved out, so it would be their place to do with it what they liked, no one would object—as long as they kept the photos in the training room somewhere. He was fine with that; he quite liked those pictures that spanned almost six decades. He also liked the idea of adding his own family to them. There was a lack of bikes in those pics.

  To no one’s surprise, they were thoroughly searched by Customs when they came back to the US. It took fucking forever, and Mitch was mostly annoyed they’d think they were stupid enough to try to smuggle stuff in that way.

  When they were finally released, the first one he saw was Anna. The other women ran up to their guys, but she was walking slowly—or hobbling, as she usually called it—and he met up with her about halfway.

  “You okay there, Gimp?”

  “Yeah,” she smiled and put her arms around him. “I’m okay.”

  He put one arm around her shoulders, and his other hand on Sprout. “And how’s my little girl?”

  “She’s good. Kicking away, tap dancing on my bladder, but according to Mel, that’s a good sign.”

  “Think so, too,” he agreed. “Missed me?”

  “Yes,” Anna whispered.

  “Hey,” Brick yelled behind them. “You guys coming to dinner?”

  Mitch looked at Anna who shook her head with a meaningful smile. His girl was horny.

  “Nah,” Mitch answered without taking his eyes from Anna. “We’re going home.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  Again

  -o0o-

  Since Mitch had come back from Amsterdam, just over a month earlier, we hadn’t spent many nights apart. The only time had been when he’d been on a run, but that was just two nights, and he’d called every night. He seemed to think I was worried he’d cheat on me, but I honestly wasn’t. I might still be worried he’d one day be bored with me, but I was pretty darn sure that day hadn’t come yet, and I didn’t think he’d cheat before that happened.

  But while things between Mitch and me were great, work was becoming a horror. Or rather, my boss, Richard, was. He’d been great, and had given me a shot despite some severe disadvantages—like the lack of education—and maybe I should just have been grateful for that, but I didn’t think I deserved the treatment I was currently receiving. He could at least have been straight with me, but instead he was doing his very best to make every hour at work hell to make sure I quit.

  I’d seen the look on his face when I told him I was pregnant, but not much had changed until the last month or so, and now—at twenty-six weeks pregnant and getting pretty big—he was starting to become a serious problem.

  His attempts to get rid of me had even affected the people I worked with to the point where they were trying to avoid me, as if my position as the boss’s least favorite employee could somehow be contagious. I had loved that theater, and it had felt like a safe place when I was at my worst, but now it was instead the worst part of my life.

  Sunday had been supposed to be my much-needed day off, but he’d informed me the day before that I needed to come in for an inventory. I had been stuck in the storage room for a full day, and it was not doing my back or my leg any favors.

  When the inventory shift was over, my entire body was aching. The warm June day was making me sweat profusely, and I just wanted to be on my own and mope and curse everything. So I called Mitch.

  “Babe!” he answered. “Where are you?”

  “I’m on my way home. Thought I’d get some alone time, but I’ll call you tomorrow. Is that okay?” I really hoped he wouldn’t ask me why, or just generally ask any questions at all, and I was in luck.

  “It’s okay. Just call me tonight, and give Sprout a kiss.”

  “Sure.”

  We hung up, and just like every time we hung up I got the feeling I should say ‘I love you.’ It might’ve been sensible early on to not say it, but now it was turning into something that frankly felt a bit uncomfortable and weird. We both had a feeling we should be saying it, and we both knew the other was feeling the very same thing. It wasn’t a big thing, though, and it was good, it had just turned into a few comical situations which had ended with us both nodding and mumbling, ‘Yeah.’

  I went directly to bed and tried to stretch my aching muscles. I was considering taking a bath, but instead I reached for the Doppler. Lisa’d lent it to me so I could listen to Sprout’s heartbeats. I’d tried it a couple of times but had never managed to hear anything when I used it, and now I really wanted to just hear something that made me calm down.

  It turned out to be a mistake, because the fact that I couldn’
t hear anything made me even more upset, and around the time I was about to throw it into the wall, the door to my room opened and Mitch was there.

  “Knew you were upset!” he said with a triumphant smile. “Wanna tell me what’s wrong?”

  He lay down in the bed next to me before I had time to answer.

  “I said I wanted some alone time. Why are you here?”

  “Because I don’t do phone arguments, and if I pushed you on the phone you would’ve gotten pissed and hung up on me.” He sneaked even closer and gave my cheek a kiss. “This way you can’t hang up on me. Wanna go to the shooting range?”

  “No. My entire body hurts and I’m tired.”

  “So tell me what’s bugging you.”

  “My boss is being a dick,” I mumbled. “I think he’s trying to get me to quit before Sprout is born, and instead of just telling me he’s… I did an inventory today and my entire body hurts.” I tried to swallow back the tears, but it didn’t work, and I moved closer to Mitch. “And I can’t get the Doppler to work.”

  “One thing at a time. First let me figure this thing out,” he said and took the Doppler from me. “And while I do that, you tell me more about what your boss is doing.”

  “Mitch, don’t worry about it.”

  “Let’s make one thing very clear, if someone is fucking with my girl while she’s pregnant, I’m gonna fucking do more than worry about it.” He fiddled with the Doppler for a while and nodded for me to pull up my sweater. “Okay, this can’t be that damn hard.”

  “It’s not going to make any difference anyway,” I said and pulled up my sweater. “I should probably just find another job.”

  “You definitely should, but I’m still gonna make it really clear to him how I feel about him treating my girl badly.” Suddenly I heard it, the heartbeat. “There! Wasn’t so hard.”